Chapter 10 Deception
Ye Hongjuan explained to Ye Hongzhen, "My brother-in-law is a level seven fitter, right? The next level is level eight, which is the top. Song Yiping's father is a corps commander, and the next level is a commander-in-chief, right? That's also the top. Aren't their ranks the same?"
Ye Hongzhen felt something was off, but it also seemed to make sense.
Li Yan and Fang Caiyun were cooking in the kitchen when they heard the two sisters talking outside. Li Yan burst out laughing and whispered to Fang Caiyun, "Auntie is good at talking nonsense. A level seven fitter is the same level as a military commander."
Fang Caiyun, being gentle by nature, smiled but didn't reply.
Li Yan only said it to Fang Caiyun; she wouldn't actually refute Ye Hongjuan.
She couldn't wait for Yan Ruyi to marry into the army commander's family, which was a truly prestigious and powerful family. Ten Shen families couldn't compare to a single hair of theirs.
However, they probably wouldn't even consider her, their sister-in-law. Given their social standing, she's not cut out for such a high position.
Ye Hongjuan continued to persuade Ye Hongzhen, "Don't worry about their social standing. As long as the child is decent and the family is understanding and treats Ruyi well, that's enough. Marrying up doesn't necessarily mean a bad life, and marrying down doesn't necessarily mean a good life. Shen Zhimin's family is a good match for us, but they didn't raise a good child. Look at the character of Shen Zhimin. I'm telling you, Ruyi is better off leaving him. If she had married him, she probably wouldn't have had a good life."
Ye Hongjuan had always disliked Shen Zhimin and would seize any opportunity to hurl insults at him.
Li Yan chimed in from the kitchen, "Auntie is right. Guobin's wife's younger sister, her father-in-law is a section chief in the Industry and Commerce Bureau. To be honest, she married above her station. They've been married for so many years, and the young couple is still very happy together. Her parents-in-law treat her well. Look at our compound, Old Chen's eldest daughter, Fengling. Her husband's family is not doing well at all. They're dirt poor. Her husband has a lot of problems. He's lazy and has a bad temper. He often beats Fengling. Her parents-in-law are also unreasonable. Fengling is really unlucky to have married into such a family. We've advised her to get a divorce, but she won't. I don't know what she's after."
Ye Hongzhen said, "Divorce isn't that easy. We already have two kids. What will happen to them if we get divorced? Besides, where will she live if we get divorced? Will she go back to her parents' house and squeeze in with her brother's wife? She'll be looked down upon! Fengling has no choice. She's not capable, she's soft-hearted, and her family doesn't support her. She can only grit her teeth and endure it. She'll just have to endure until the kids are older and can support her."
Li Yan said, "What if my child is unfilial in the future? I'll suffer for the rest of my life."
Ye Hongzhen: "If she doesn't stand up for herself, whose fault is it?"
...
We got sidetracked as we talked.
Ye Hongjuan said, "Hey, we were just talking about Ruyi, how did we end up talking about Fengling?"
Fang Caiyun came out of the kitchen carrying a plate of food. "If you ask me, we should let the two of them meet first. Whether they are suitable or not is not up to us to decide. We should listen to Ruyi's opinion. She has to find a partner who suits her taste."
Ye Hongjuan: "That makes sense. Commander Song is about to go on a business trip, and we probably won't be able to meet for a while."
Ye Hongzhen was persuaded, "There must be photos, right? Let Ruyi see the photos first and see if Ruyi likes them."
No one knows a daughter better than her mother. If a daughter likes a good-looking man, then at least she has to pass the test of appearance.
If you're not good-looking, you don't even need to meet them.
Ye Hongjuan said, "I came here today for this. Please give me a photo of Ruyi. Tomorrow, Dr. Liu, please bring over a photo of Commander Song as well. Both of you can take a look at the photos first. If you feel that you like each other, we can arrange for the two of you to meet when Commander Song returns from his business trip."
"There should be a photo. Ruyi should be back by now. When she gets back, ask her to find one for you."
As they were talking, Yan Ruyi pushed the cart into the yard.
Ye Hongjuan: "Ruyi, give me a photo of yourself, a solo photo."
Seeing that Yan Ruyi was a little confused, Ye Hongzhen explained from the side, "Your aunt introduced you to someone, but he's been too busy lately to meet you. He wants to exchange photos first."
Yan Ruyi's mind was filled with the sight of stacks of 100 yuan, and she was so excited she felt like she could float on air. She had no time to think about anything else, so she replied, "I don't want to find a partner right now."
Ye Hongjuan felt that she was hurt by Shen Zhimin, otherwise, why wouldn't she want to be in a relationship at such a young age?
Then it's even more necessary to introduce her to someone. With someone, she can get over her previous relationship sooner.
Ye Hongjuan said, "Looking for a partner is something you have to do. It's not like you can find the right one right away. You have to take your time. If you think someone is suitable, you can meet them. If not, you can keep looking."
Ye Hongzhen said, "Your aunt is right. It's not like we're going to make you date someone right away. If it works out, then try dating. If it doesn't, then look for someone else. You'll eventually find someone suitable."
Li Yan also joined in trying to persuade her, and Yan Ruyi couldn't resist, so she went to find photos for her aunt.
There are photos, but the ones from the last two years are mostly photos of her and Luo Huihui together; there are very few solo photos.
She searched for a long time and finally found a one-inch photo, which was her ID photo taken when she graduated from high school.
He then gave this photo to Ye Hongjuan.
Ye Hongjuan was not satisfied. "This was taken when you were in high school, right? It's been so many years, I can hardly recognize you. Let's take another one."
Yan Ruyi: "No, this is the only recent one."
Didn't you take new photos when you graduated from university?
"No, we had a lot of photos developed at the time, and this is the one we used for ID photos."
Fearing that Ye Hongjuan wouldn't believe him, he simply handed the photo album to her.
Ye Hongjuan flipped through the pages from beginning to end. There were individual photos, but they were all from the past, even earlier than that one-inch photo.
Li Yan wanted to facilitate the marriage and enthusiastically suggested, "Why don't you have Ruyi go to the photo studio tomorrow to take a new photo?"
Her words reminded Ye Hongjuan, and she said to Yan Ruyi, "I remember there's a photo studio across from your workplace. Go take a picture there when you have some free time tomorrow. It'll only take a few minutes. I'll come pick it up in a few days. That's settled then. I don't have anything else to do. I need to go back and cook. I'm off."
After saying that, he stood up, pushed his cart, and hurriedly walked out.
Ye Hongzhen said, "It's almost lunchtime, eat first..."
Before she could finish speaking, Ye Hongjuan had already disappeared.
Ye Hongzhen said, "Neither of your maternal grandparents were impatient people. I don't know where she got her personality from."
Turning my head, I saw Xiao Hua circling Yan Ruyi's bicycle, meowing with her head tilted back, and even trying to reach out her paws to grab the oil paper package on the handlebars.
He asked Yan Ruyi, "What's in your paper package? Why is Xiaohua keeping calling out to you?"
Yan Ruyi suddenly remembered that she had forgotten to take out the braised beef and pig intestines she had just bought because her aunt asked her about the photos.
He took the oil paper package off the handlebars and said, "I bought some braised beef and pork intestines."
Ye Hongzhen said, "That's just what your second brother wants. He's been clamoring for meat all the time, and he was still talking about it this morning."
Fang Caiyun took the braised beef and pig intestines and put them on a plate in the kitchen.
Li Yan followed her into the kitchen, muttering under her breath, "It's not even a holiday, yet they're buying so much braised beef and pork intestines. They haven't even earned a penny yet, and they're already spending so lavishly. If they don't marry into a wealthy family, no one can afford to support them."
Fang Caiyun was extremely annoyed by Li Yan's behavior, but she didn't dare to say anything to her face, only daring to gossip about her behind her back.
Besides, this meat isn't just for my sister-in-law to eat alone; it's for everyone to share.
They don't have to spend a penny and they even get to eat meat, isn't that great? What's the point of crickets?
She pretended not to hear and did not respond to Li Yan's words.
Li Yan wanted to find an ally, but Fang Caiyun didn't respond to her. Feeling awkward, she pouted and stopped talking.
After dinner, Yan Minghai said to Fang Caiyun, "Take Miaomiao back later, don't wait for me."
Miaomiao is the daughter of Yan Minghai and Fang Caiyun. Her full name is Yan Yongdan, and her nickname is Miaomiao. She has just learned to walk. When she saw Yan Minghai stand up, she reached out her arms for her father to hold her.
Yan Minghai touched her cheek. "Let your mom hold you. Dad and your second uncle will go and get you some cicada nymphs. We'll fry them for you to eat tomorrow morning."
After saying that, he gave Yan Mingtao a wink. Yan Mingtao quickly finished the rice in his bowl, then pushed the bowl away. The two of them stood up and walked out.
Ye Hongzhen didn't believe they were going to catch cicada nymphs. "What are you two doing?"
Yan Mingtao gave a vague reply, "Something came up," and then the two of them left.
Ye Hongzhen: "What's wrong? Why are you acting so mysteriously?"
He said that, but didn't press for details.
The second brother, Yan Mingtao, was a free spirit, but the eldest brother, Yan Minghai, was steady and reliable. With the eldest brother around, the two of them wouldn't do anything out of line, so they were left to their own devices.
While washing the dishes, Li Yan whispered to Fang Caiyun, "Sister-in-law, do you know what those two went to do?"
Fang Caiyun shook her head. "I don't know, your older brother didn't tell me."
Yan Minghai didn't tell her, but she could guess what they were up to.
A note from the author:
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Commander Song will make his official appearance in the next chapter.
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